


We Were Born For This

by yeedthelasthaw



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst with a Happy Ending, Brotherhood, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Family Dynamics, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Mage!Sapnap, Mutual Pining, Oblivious, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Soulmates, Prince!George, Slow Burn, anyways this is basically dteam growing up together, dream team, dreamnotfound, karlnap, knight!dream, mage sapnap, might sprinkle in some angst, my boy's got powers, okay so like-, real names are used but it is the personas being shipped, so i lied im definitely sprinkling some angst in this, theyre all big dumb idiots, this was inspired by a tweet, yes you heard me
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:21:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27614090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeedthelasthaw/pseuds/yeedthelasthaw
Summary: Clay wheezed, shushing the boy in front of him as Nick's wooden sword barely brushed across his own. Nick's battle cry was loud. It had sent birds shooting from the oak tree in the garden, which was sure to garner attention from castle attendants.Sure enough, the garden's fence opened with a loud creak. Clay froze, breath heavy. They were in so much trouble. Nick's head turned to face the gate, face scrunched with guilt."Prince George?" slipped from Nick's lips, a disbelieving tone dancing along with the words. His eyes flicked to Clay, whose eyes were wide, shining in fear."Oh, you guys are playing? Can I play?" The boy at the gate grinned, eyes alight with excitement.----basically uhhhh dream team medieval au....... many thoughts head full. dream and sap childhood best friends meet the prince and somehow become unlikely friends heheheInspired by a tweet from @DRE4MSHIFT!
Relationships: Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound, Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF)/GeorgeNotFound, GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Karl Jacobs & Sapnap, Karl Jacobs/Sapnap
Comments: 5
Kudos: 118





	We Were Born For This

**Author's Note:**

> okay so like-
> 
> i used to write fics a long time ago but i havent done it in a really long time so i make no promises that this is gonna be good jdfkhksdjh
> 
> anyways! enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is all about Sapnap, Dream, and George's first meeting! I just wanted some exposition before I started writing some more about the rest of their story :D
> 
> also, my understanding of blacksmithing is so bad JDHKSJFH I tried looking up videos and stuff but literally nothing I could find helped me understand so yall get a scuffed explanation

Dusk brought many things to the kingdom of Raed. Bustling townspeople rushing to get their children in for supper, various castle dwellers securing the kingdom for nightfall, and shop owners beginning to close. Lanterns were lit, illuminating the stone walkways that patterned the ground of the markets and homes surrounding the castle. The silver moon danced with the orange firelight, casting warm yellow gleams across the faces of passersby.

However, the lights can never hide every shadow. For along the alleys of the castles, two boys whispered amongst each other. Sword in the hand of the shorter, and axe in the hands of the other. Their steps were silent, their breathing long and slow, moving in tandem with one another. They'd done this before. Reaching the iron gates of the gardens, the shorter glanced back at the taller. The taller nodded, turning his head and keeping low. A dim flash occurred in his peripheral view. The lock hit the ground with a gentle thud. A smug grin pulled at the shorter's mouth, a mischievous glint sparkling bright in his eyes as he made eye contact with his friend. The wind gave a soft whistle through the bushes as the taller grinned in response.

"You're getting quicker at that, Nick," The taller whispered as he watched his friend, Nick, open the gate with a mock bow. He entered the gate and heard it release a murmur of a creak as Nick placed the lock back across the handles, acting as if the lock was never broken in the first place. He turned back at his friend.

"Of course I am, Clay," Nick scoffed, raising his wooden sword to be eye level with Clay. "I've been practicing since I was - what, 7 years old? That's around 5 years of practicing breaking a lock," he rolled his eyes, breathing a short laugh. "Now, come on, we have to practice quick. Mom's gonna start wondering where I am in about an hour." The boy's green eyes flicked up and narrowed at the large bell tower located to the right of the gardens, attempting to judge his time correctly. He nodded, turning his attention back to Clay, who was already running at him with a grin.

"Clay!" Nick squawked, trying to keep his voice quiet as he stepped backward and threw his sword up in a parry to Clay's axe. The taller boy released a squeaking wheeze, choking out a laugh as he stepped back.

"You told me to go!" He defended, voice in a hiss. Clay flicked his hair back, the blonde shining golden in the glow of the lanterns. "Are you ready? For real, this time?"

Nick narrowed his eyes, raising his sword again. He took one step, then two, and then they were both running.

It was easy for the two boys to get lost in one another when they fought. The real world didn't exist. They were no longer Nick and Clay; no longer peasants of Raed. They became Dream and Sapnap, knights that fought by the king's side in war; knights who didn't run when the world got tough. They fought and fought, tackling each other to the dirt on various occasions.

They used to be uneven fights, with Clay being shorter and not putting his whole heart into the fights. He was once so afraid of being caught.

In recent years, however, Clay's height began to grow, alongside his love of fighting with his best friend. Suddenly, sneaking into the castle grounds didn't seem so scary. As long as his best friend was at his side, he was invincible.

They fought until both could barely breathe. Both faces were red and sweaty, even beneath the chill of the night air. Nick choked out a cough, his breathing ragged.

"One... one more round," He said, and he struck.

Clay wheezed, shushing the boy in front of him as Nick's wooden sword barely brushed across his own. Nick's battle cry was loud. It had sent birds shooting from the oak tree in the garden, which was sure to garner attention from castle attendants.

Nick tackled the tallest, who wasn't even fighting back anymore. His breath was shaky; harsh and ragged from the fighting. Clay basked in the high of adrenaline, laying beneath his friend, who cackled and claimed victory. Nothing could have ruined their fun.

Or so they thought.

The garden's fence opened with a loud creak.

Clay froze, breath heavy. They were in so much trouble. Nick's head turned to face the gate, face scrunched with guilt.

"Prince George?" slipped from Nick's lips, a disbelieving tone dancing along with the words. His eyes flicked to Clay, whose eyes were wide, shining in fear. Clay couldn't move his eyes away from the literal _prince_ of the castle they snuck into.

Nick stood, his wooden sword discarded on the ground. Countless apologies danced on his tongue, and just as he opened his mouth to let them fall out, the prince spoke.

"Oh, you guys are playing? Can I play?" The boy at the gate grinned, eyes alight with excitement.

The boy was in wool pants and a silk tunic. Nick looked down at his blonde friend, and then down at himself. Both were stained with dirt, wearing cotton clothes with holes in some seams. Nick's boots were falling apart on the soles. Clay's blonde locks hadn't been cut in a bit, so they were overgrown and beginning to fray at the ends. The two looked like their status. Hell, they were trespassing!

So why did the crown prince of Raed wish to entertain them?

Clay spoke up first, the shock of the prince's arrival and question having worn off.

"Uhm, I'm sorry..." He said, face falling. He glanced behind the prince's head at the bell tower, watching the hands of the clock tick closer to Nick's curfew. "We have to get home."

The prince's face fell, and he pulled back with his arms wrapping around himself. He opened his mouth to speak.

"Wait!" Nick spoke up, finally over his shock. "We'll be back again tomorrow... would you like to join us then?" He offered, glancing at Clay for support. The blonde shrugged, hoping that the prince would take mercy on them.

The boy's expression shifted, a smile of hope twisting at his features. "Tomorrow, then? Is it alright if I bring a friend?"

The two trespassers nodded, offering smiles of their own. Nick reached down to help Clay off of the ground, and when he looked back up, the prince was gone.

Clay breathed a sigh of relief. "God, I didn't know _what_ was gonna happen there."

Nick gave a nod, still speechless.

Clay tossed his arm around Nick's shoulders. "Come on, let's get home. Do not mention this to your parents, they'll ground you again like last time, which will get me grounded, too," he teased, nudging his friend with a gentle laugh.

Nick snorted, tossing Clay's arm away from him. "Yeah, yeah. Get out so I can lock the gate again."

Clay's wheeze and Nick's jabs at the taller boy echoed in the still air of the village.

###

Nick groaned. Taking a drink, he felt the flames stifle any cool breezes attempting to enter the shop. Despite the frosty chill of Autumn settling in, the blacksmith's shop was never cold, even when not in use. He watched as the fire engulfed the iron, searing it with a white-hot tone. He pulled his gloves back on, grabbed the steel clamps, and pulled the metal slab from the flames. Placing it on the anvil, he pulled the mallet from his apron, banging the metal into a flat shape. His father watched on from the back of the shop, a cup of tea in his hands.

"Don't forget to-,"

"Don't forget to shape the metal before it gets too flat or else it'll break," Nick recited, looking up at his dad. He winked. "I remember." He looked back down to continue hammering.

His father scoffed, taking a sip from his tea. "You know," he began, "you really could start making more things, other than swords."

Nick sighed, rolling his shoulders and placing the mallet down. He pulled the chisel from his belt, beginning to carve the custom design into the blade. "Dad, I know. I've got time to learn all of that, though. M'only twelve, and I'm really enjoying making swords right now." His tone left no room for argument, and his face was concentrated on his project. 

"I just don't get why you put so much effort into physically doing this when you could snap your fingers and make 20."

Nick froze. Sweat dripped off of his nose, sizzling at it hit the red metal beneath his hands. His breathing was a few paces quicker than normal. "I'm not risking the shop just because you want to take the easy way out," he said, voice as hot as the flames behind him. "I know that's not what you mean, but I'd rather do it personally than take a shortcut."

His father chuffed, taking his leave. The older man threw his apron with a huff, the tools in the pockets clanging loudly in the empty store. The door slammed shut behind him. Nick sighed, grabbing the clamps once more to place the iron back into the fire.

He had a minute or two before the metal completely heated back up, so he walked to the restroom. Looking into the mirror, he stared at his reflection.

The brown hair and nose were the only parts of him that alluded to his father's existence in his birth. The face structure, green eyes, and lips were his mother, through and through. His interests derived from his mother. He cared too much, wanted too little in return, and wished to do things correctly. His father just didn't understand. He didn't see why Nick cared so much about doing things right. As long as his father could get some coin, he didn't care.

Nick splashed some water from the bucket onto his face, to cool himself off. Inhaling deeply, he walked back to the workspace.

"There you are!"

"Shit!" Nick yelped, whirling around to face the front door.

Clay, in all his 5'10" glory, flashed a wicked grin, letting out a barking laugh. The fourteen-year-old blonde watched as his friend caught his breath from the shock.

"Warn a guy when you're coming in unannounced!" Nick snapped, brows pinched.

Clay's laugh ceased. "Hey, what's up? What happened?"

Nick couldn't take the concern in his friend's voice. "Nothing, I'm fine. Just some stuff with Dad," he said, brushing past his taller friend to throw himself back into the custom order he was creating.

Clay grunted in understanding. He'd never been a fan of Nick's dad. "Well, hurry up, we've gotta have plenty of time to clean up before we head back to the gardens."

Nick, reaching into the flames to grab the reheated piece of iron, rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I'm going. This'll probably take me another half hour to finish. They wanted a really complex design," he complained, setting it back on the anvil.

Clay nodded. "Take your time. I'm gonna make some tea, you want some?" 

"There should already be some made on the stove. My dad had some before he left."

"I'm not drinking his chamomile water," the eldest said, face crinkled in disgust. "I snagged some honey from my mom's basket before she left for work, so I'm making you some tea with honey. I'm assuming your lemons and sugar are still in the cupboards?"

"Unless they've moved since yesterday, yes," Nick snarked, causing Clay to give him a look. Nick snorted.

Nick continued to clang about in the front studio, listening to Clay hum a little song he must have heard on his way through town. Soon enough, the smell of fresh tea danced with citrus and honey and mixed with the scent of ash and fire. Nick had finished the carving and was hammering out the sword once more to flatten it to the desired thickness. He still had to sharpen the blade and attach it to the hilt that his mother had made, but that could wait just a bit longer. He doused the fire, allowing it to flicker out and leave smoldering ash in its wake. The younger boy placed the blade on the cooling rack just as Clay walked in with two mugs and some bread and jam on a small plate.

"Figured you've been working all day, so I grabbed some food for you," Clay responded to Nick's furrowed brow. The statement made Nick flush, looking away in embarrassment. Clay rolled his eyes, placing the mugs and plate on the small dining table in the shop. Shoving the plate towards his younger friend, he propped his feet on the corner of the table, letting his boots hang off the edge. Nick grabbed a piece of bread and spread some jam on the surface, taking a bite.

"You can't keep skipping meals, Nick."

"It was an accident, Clay. I meant to go eat before my dad came by, but he stopped by early and I really wanted to avoid being in the same room as him for as long as I could."

"I know, but I also know that you get lost in work really often, too. You need sustenance if you're gonna grow taller," the blonde teases, grabbing for his mug.

Nick groaned, narrowing his eyes at his friend. "I'm younger than you. I can still grow! Watch me get even taller than you by the time I'm your age."

Clay wheezed. He nearly spat tea all over the shop, but his hand slapped over his mouth. The muscles in his face tensed, forcing his features to distort with his laugh. The taller boy managed to swallow his drink, breathing heavily and continuing to let out soft wheezes here and there. "I'll be sixteen by the time you're my age, so I'll still be growing too. You'll never reach my height," he joked, offering a posh, upturned grin that screamed smug.

Nick snorted, shaking his head. "We'll just have to see that, won't we?"

Clay narrowed his eyes with his grin, nodding a sharp movement.

A few moments of silence stretched by the two boys.

"Do you think this is a trap?"

Nick looked up from his mug. His eyes raked over Clay's furrowed brow and bitten-raw lips. "What is?"

"The prince. Why would he want to spend time with us? This has to be a trap, right? He asked to bring a friend!" Clay explained, staring at his friend.

Nick shrugged. "He could have easily done something last night. He basically had us cornered, but he let us go. I say we give him the benefit of the doubt."

Clay's brow never relaxed. "I guess," he replied, glancing over at the clock on the wall. "Come on, we gotta go get our stuff for tonight."

Nick shoved the last piece of bread in his mouth and stood. "Let me put these together, and then we can go."

Clay rolled his eyes. "Of course, anything for you, you absolute turtle."

Nick whacked his friend in the chest, eliciting a yelp from the blonde.

###

Nightfall struck quickly, and the golden hue began to dance across the stones once more. The two boys, like they'd done every night for years, snuck through the shadows with their fake weapons. This time, however, they had duplicates of each weapon. One for each person, just in case this wasn't a trap.

The iron gates seemed a lot more daunting as they approached them this time. The strong bars were melted together just so they were nearly indestructable. Nick clenched his eyes shut as he unlocked the lock; Clay watching as a gold strip shot from his finger and entered the keyhole. The lock fell to the ground as it had done for half a decade and the boys entered with no changes. However, when they entered, two boys stared back at them.

The one on the left, leaning against the tree, with black hair that shone silver in the moonlight looked at the two boys with a grin. His white teeth and brown eyes sparkled, making him look much younger and much less powerful than he truly is. There in the gardens was none other than Prince George.

The one on the right, sitting in the grass and reclining on his arms, with chestnut brown hair and blue eyes looked at the two with a soft smile. His cheeks and nose were bright pink from the cold air, and he was dressed in a wool jumper with thick cotton pants. He didn't seem like royalty, but he definitely was more powerful than either Nick or Clay.

"Hi," Nick blurted after a moment of silent staring. He pulled his eyes away from the ice blue that stared back at him. "So, uhm, we," he gestured between Clay and himself, "brought toys for you guys," he said. He held out the wooden axe and wooden sword they had made before they left.

Prince George looked at the weapons and his eyes brightened.

"Thank you so much!" He exclaimed, grabbing the axe.

Nick glanced over at the boy in the grass. "I guess that means you get the sword," he smiled, offering the sword to the boy.

The giggle that escaped him was loud; short bursts of happiness that made Nick grin wider. The boy grabbed the sword.

"I'm Karl," he said. "Forgive the prince, he gets a bit overexcited at the prospect of new friends, so he skips the introductory steps," the boy, Karl, explained, giggling harder when George spluttered out a protest.

Nick could get used to having that laugh in his ears. "Well, I'm Nick, and the tall one is Clay. It's nice to meet you guys."

Clay had moved to teach George how to properly hold the axe to maintain proper control, with the prince taking the lesson completely seriously. Nick rolled his eyes. Clay was just rambling about the logistics of holding an axe, barely even teaching. He does that a lot, and Nick could listen to it for hours, but it's odd to see a stranger do it.

"It's nice to meet you guys as well! I can tell we'll get along well," Karl spoke up.

"You think?"

"You guys came back after the prince's offer. He won't let go anytime soon."

**Author's Note:**

> aaaaaaaaaaaa chapter one done! i did not know how to end it skdjhsdhkj
> 
> please tell me what you think! id love to hear any critiques!  
> my twt is @ashesoversalem if you'd like to DM me there!
> 
> i have no clue when i'll post the next chapter, but i'll try to be consistent!


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